Idiot
by Wenwalke
Summary: His idiot partner had gone in without proper backup, again and now Danny's sure that Steve's dead.
1. Chapter 1

**AN: **This story was almost finished two weeks ago when my husband, who had just read my other three Five-0 stories, asked. "Why do you always hurt Danny? I think you should hurt Steve in your next story." So I went back and revised the story and hurt them both, Steve more than Danny this time. As usual, thanks to June for her help with the final revision.

**Summary:** His idiot partner had gone in without proper backup, again and now Danny's sure that Steve's dead.

**Idiot ****bywenwalke**

**Chapter One**

"What. The. Hell. Are. You. Doing?"

Steve jumped at the anger in Danny's voice, "I just thought I'd see if Collins was in there."

"No. No. I don't think so. We already agreed, on the way out here, that we'd wait for the proper back up this time," Danny said, exasperation evident in his voice.

"Well you may have talk about that, but I'm sure I never agreed to wait," Steve said mildly.

"Yes. Yes you did. I'll quote, 'Back up is about five minutes behind us so we'll wait for them, right Steve?' To which you replied, 'Um'. To me, that was an agreement to wait."

"No it was just an um, nothing more."

"Collins is a cold blooded killer Steve. You back him into a corner and there's no telling what he'll do."

"Like throw a grenade and blow up a patrol car with two officers inside? Yeah I know Danny, but his truck is parked over there, this cave is the only place he can be hiding." Steve was now outside the entrance to the cave and checking his gun.

It didn't matter that Steve was right. They'd check out the truck, which was empty. There were no trees or rocks behind which Collins could hide. Logically, the only place he could be was in the cave. However, Danny had a feeling that something was wrong. This had all been just too easy.

"You'll go in alone Steve, because I'm not going in with you until we have back up. By back up, I mean more than just me. This feels like a trap. He's out here somewhere watching us, or he's in there waiting." Danny leaned against Steve's truck and looked back down the road. He could see dust in the distance and knew it was their backup. Chin and Kono would be the first cloud he could see. HPD would be the larger cloud, not far behind. They'd managed to track Collin's phone signal along this road and on finding his empty truck near the cave entrance, Steve decided that Collins was in the cave.

"Steve, you know I'd follow you anywhere if it made sense. This makes no sense. Just wait five more minutes, then we'll go in. Please?" Danny spoke calmly and slowly in an attempt to delay Steve.

Steve, however, was not open to Danny's delaying tactics. This whole case had become personal to him, so with a last look at Danny he headed into the cave on his own.

"Well that went precisely the way I expected," Danny mumbled to himself. He pushed away from the truck, but didn't move to follow Steve, instead he stood and looked around. He was sure this was a trap. Collins was here somewhere and Danny didn't think it was in the cave. The man was crazy, in Danny's opinion, but he was too smart to trap himself in a cave. He had to be out here somewhere.

This whole case started a little over 24 hours ago with the death of two HPD officers. Their patrol car had been blown up when a grenade was tossed beneath it. At the time, no one knew why it had happened, but Five-0 was put on the case by the governor and he wanted results fast.

Chin and Kono worked together to find video of the attack on the patrol car and in a couple of hours had pieced together a decent account of what went down.

The officers had stopped to help a driver who appeared to be in trouble. The hood of his truck was up and he waved down the patrol car. Before the officers could exit their car, the man threw a grenade beneath it and then walked calmly back to his own vehicle. "They never stood a chance," Danny had said.

They had a clear picture of the man's face and it took only minutes to put a name to it. Trevor Collins. He'd been dishonourably discharged from the Navy only two weeks prior. His attempt to go through Seal training at the base on Oahu had failed and then after a number of fights in different bars around Honolulu, the Navy had discharged him.

Steve took it personally, as Danny knew he would. He wanted to catch Collins and pushed everyone to work faster and harder to find him. When Danny sent the cousins home at 10 p.m. Steve became angry. "What the hell Danny. I decide when we call it quits for the night, not you."

"Not tonight you don't. You're not thinking straight Steve. You've let this one become personal and you need to step back and be objective here."

"No. What I need is for you to back off Danny," Steve said in a tight voice as he walked past Danny to the smart table in the centre of the room. "I have to find this guy before he kills again, because I know he'll kill again."

"You see that Steve? That's what I mean." Danny followed Steve to the table. "It's not you that has to find Collins. It's us," Danny said as he waved his hands around to indicate the whole office. "Now we," Danny waved his hand between the two of them, "we are going home. Tomorrow we'll get a break in the case and catch Collins. Tonight we go home and rest."

Steve looked at Danny, then with a sigh he admitted defeat. "Okay Danny, we'll go home. I'm not sure how much rest I'll get, but I'll try."

The next morning they'd got the break Danny had predicted. Collins called Five-0 and taunted them. He was proud of how he'd killed the HPD officers and wanted Five-0 to know that. Chin managed to track his cell and Steve raced from the office to go after him. Danny just made it into Steve's truck before he pulled out of the parking lot.

"Steve? What the hell was that?" Danny yelled. "You would have gone off by yourself?"

"I waited for you to get in the truck, didn't I?"

"Waited? You waited? No Steven you didn't wait. If I'd been a couple of seconds slower you would have left. Admit it."

"I have to get him Danny."

"There you go again with the I Steven. We have to get him. I'm your partner. We catch the bad guys together. Remember?"

"Okay, so we're together now," Steve said as he sped along the highway. "Call Chin and find out where Collins is headed."

They'd followed the signal from Collins phone out of Honolulu to this remote area. Danny's years of experience told him this was a trap, but, as usual, Steve wasn't listening to him.

Danny glanced back at the cave to see that Steve was now all the way inside. That was when Collins chose to reveal himself. A movement in the corner of his eye had Danny grab his gun and swing back around toward the truck parked to the side of the cave. Collins had just rolled out from beneath the truck and was already on his feet with his arm back, ready to throw what Danny knew, with a sinking heart, was a grenade. The same thing he'd used to take out the patrol car the previous day. Collins had to have been up under the truck for them to have missed him and Danny knew he'd be too late to stop him.

"Steve! Get down!" Danny yelled as he fired. His shot hit Collins in the chest and from the way he fell, Danny knew he was dead. There was no time to worry about that though as Danny realised the grenade had not been thrown at him but the hillside above the entrance to the cave. He saw Steve turn back at the sound of his yell and gun shot, but then rocks and earth came raining down as the grenade exploded. Danny dove to the side with his left arm over his head for protection.

Danny pushed to his feet with a groan. His left arm hurt like hell, and it had only partially protected his head from a rock. He was lucky with the rocks that hit the rest of him, they were a lot smaller. Danny ignored the pain as he ran to Steve's truck. He knew there was a backpack of emergency supplies in the cab. As he opened the door and grasped the pack, Danny had his phone out calling Chin.

"Chin, Collins blew the mouth of the cave and Steve's inside. I'm going in after him."

"No Danny, wait. We'll be there in two minutes."

"Good, then you'll be right behind me," Danny said as he hung up. He was already at the cave and pushed the phone into his pocket as he started to climb over rocks in an attempt to gain entrance. It wasn't easy. His upper arm hurt and he suspected it was fractured. The pack he'd slung on his back didn't help with the hip and back pain, it just made it worse, but Danny was determined to find Steve. The last sight he'd had of him was Steve turning back to the entrance at the sound of the shot. Then the rocks had rained down and Danny was afraid that Steve had come back far enough to be under them.

As he slid over the last of the rocks, Danny heard the sirens that heralded the arrival of backup. He knew what he was doing right now was exactly the kind of thing he ranted at Steve about, but to hell with that.

It was dark in the cave, only a small amount of light filtered in from the area that was still open at the entrance.

"Steve! Steve! God damn it Steve. Answer me!" Danny called. No sound came back to him. He needed more light to see. Steve could be right in front of him and he'd never find him in the gloom. With a grunt of pain, Danny took off the pack and felt for the flashlight he knew was in the side pocket. Light flooded the cave as Danny slowly moved the flashlight to look for any sign of Steve. There was nothing. Danny knew that if Steve had kept moving towards the entrance, then he'd be crushed under the rocks. As he sank to his knees, he gave one last anguished cry, "Steve!"

**TBC**

**AN: **I love reviews so please let me know what you think so far.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: **Thanks for all the reviews, alerts and favorite stories. It good to know so many of you are enjoying this.

Forgot to say: "I don't own Hawaii Five-0, etc. etc. etc."

**Chapter Two**

Danny knelt there in pain and shock, not wanting to believe that Steve could be buried under the rocks, but in his heart he knew that Steve would have run back to help him when he realised that Danny was in trouble. Steve would assume, as he had, that Collins would throw the grenade at Danny. If Danny had gone in with Steve they'd both have been at the back of the cave and away from the rocks. Trapped, maybe, but alive, not crushed under tons of rock like Steve was now.

"Danny?" It was so quiet that Danny missed it the first time. "Danny?" This time Danny looked up, not sure if he was really hearing his name or not. He saw some of the rocks over at the far side of the rock pile move. He crawled over as he didn't think he could stand up. His head was pounding and he felt a little dizzy too.

"Steve?" Danny pushed rocks away and soon had most of Steve uncovered. He lay on his stomach with his face turned away from Danny. As Danny moved the rocks from around him Steve pushed himself up on his elbows and turned his head and looked up. Danny couldn't help it. He needed to release the emotions that were boiling inside of him. He'd thought Steve was dead, now here he was, admittedly bruised and battered, but seemingly okay.

"You idiot! I saw you run back towards me. I thought you were dead, buried under that pile of rocks." Danny's right hand waved towards the rocks blocking the entrance to the cave, his left arm he held against his body. There were tears of relief in his eyes and he couldn't stop them from escaping. "Idiot," he said again as he hit Steve on the arm. There was no real force behind it, however.

Steve caught hold of Danny's hand. "I'm sorry Danny. I realised at the last second that Collin's would throw a grenade, most likely at the hillside over the cave, so I dove back over here." Steve tried to push himself up, but his legs were still buried by rocks. "Are you okay Danny?"

"Yeah. I got hit by some rocks, but I'm okay." Danny pulled his phone from his pocket. "Let's see if this'll work in here." After a few seconds he got an answer. "Chin. I found Steve. Yeah, he's okay." Danny listened a while then carried on, "I know I should have waited, but I had to find Steve." Danny listened some more. "Tell them to be careful. The rocks are very unstable." He hung up just as the rocks shifted and blocked the entrance. "Damn, now we really are trapped," Danny muttered.

"Call Chin back and see if everyone's alright Danny." Steve tried to move his legs out from the rest of the rocks without much success.

"Way ahead of you there," Danny said, his phone already at his ear. "Chin, is everyone alright? Good. How long to get us out of here? What! Okay, do your best."

"So? How long?" Steve asked.

"He doesn't know. They may need to bring in equipment. It could be a while."

"I heard what you said to Chin. So you came in here to find me without backup Danny? Just curious."

Danny looked sheepish. "They were almost here when I came in."

"Aha. Wait for backup Steve. How many times have you said that to me Danny? I'll bet that Chin told you to wait for backup, didn't he?"

"He may have suggested I wait, yes."

"So, in your infinite wisdom, you decided you didn't need to wait and now you're trapped in here with me."

"Yep Steve, looks that way." Danny moved over and changed the subject as he helped Steve move the last of the rocks. "I can see the pain. So where are you hurt Super Seal?"

Steve looked at Danny, then shook his head as he went along with the change of subject. "My whole left side, but I think it's just mostly bruises Danny. My left leg really hurts. I think it may be broken. When we get these last two rocks moved we'll know."

Danny looked at the last two rocks. There was a big one partially on Steve's left leg and partially on a smaller rock. "Okay, I'll push it up while you move your leg out. On three Steve," Danny said as he got into position with his right shoulder against the larger of the rocks.

"Hey Danny, is that on the count of three? You know, like when we pulled our id's the first time we met?" Steve asked with a grin on his face.

Yes you idiot," Danny said with a smile, "on the count of three."

"One. Two. Three." At three Danny pushed as hard as he could, but he needed his left hand to stabilize the rock. Steve pulled his leg free with a grunt of pain. Danny gasped as he let go of the rock. He fell on his right side and grasped his left upper arm.

"Danny what is it?" With a grunt of pain, Steve rotated himself so he was close to Danny and tried to move Danny's hand away so that he could look at his arm. "Let me see Danny."

"It's broken Steven. I think it was fractured, but when I used it to push the rock, that finished it off."

"Now who's an idiot Danny? If I had my pack, there's a splint in there we could use." Steve eased himself back against the rock wall and pulled out his knife to cut open Danny's shirt sleeve. By the looks of Danny's arm it was definitely broken.

Danny pushed himself up and sat next to Steve as Steve used the knife to cut open his left pant leg. "I'm sure my leg's broken too."

"Well. Then it's a good thing that I brought your pack with me. It's over there," Danny said pointing back to where he'd entered the cave.

"I'll go get it," Steve said having exposed his leg, which to Danny looked like one big bruise.

"You? You'll go get it? You have a broken leg Steven. Look at it. At least all I have is a broken arm. I think I can go get the pack." With that, Danny slowly pushed himself to his feet, mindful of his painful body and head.

He retrieved the pack and was almost back to where Steve sat, when the world around him wavered and he staggered the last few of feet.

"Whoa. Whoa. Danny. Take it easy." Steve managed to catch hold of Danny before he fell and eased him down beside him.

"Sorry. Little dizzy there," was all Danny said, as he lay his head back against the rock wall with his eyes closed.

Steve took the pack from Danny and started opening pockets and removing supplies. Danny's arm was definitely broken. Steve could see a bump that told him where the break was.

"I'll have to set this before I put the splint on Danny. It'll hurt."

"Okay Nurse Rambo. Just do it," Danny growled. He hadn't opened his eyes since Steve had eased him down, and he looked pale.

"Okay. Well I need you to lie down. Here, I'll help you," Steve said as he turned Danny and helped him lay down.

"Wait! You should use the splint on your leg Steve." Danny finally opened his eyes and looked at Steve.

"You need it more that I do Danny. I'll wrap my leg, once I get your arm splinted. Ready?" While he'd been talking, Steve had positioned himself so that he could pull Danny's arm to set the bone back in place.

"No. I'm not ready, but do it anyway." Danny closed his eyes again. He didn't want to see any of this.

Steve pulled Danny's arm, which caused Danny to gasp in pain but he said nothing. While he put the splint on, Steve asked, "why'd you use your arm to push the rock if you thought it was fractured Danny?"

"What was I supposed to do? Leave you trapped under that rock? No I don't think so Steven. Besides, it could have just been bruised."

Steve pulled bandages out of the pack along with a collapsible shovel. He used the handle to stabilize his leg, then wrapped the bandages as tight as he could. Danny had opened his eyes and watched Steve work.

"You were headed back to the entrance because you thought I was in trouble, weren't you?"

"I left you out there alone Danny. Collins would have killed you if he could. You shot him?"

"Did I shoot him? Of course I shot him Steve. He was hiding up under the body of his truck. That's how we missed him. By the time I saw him, he was already throwing the grenade, at me I thought, but no he threw it at the hillside."

"You mean that's how I missed him. I was the one who looked under the truck. I should have looked harder. I'm sorry I didn't listen to you about coming in here."

Danny shifted uncomfortably. "Yeah, well I'm sorry I yelled at you. I should have come in with you, then we'd have been trapped but not hurt."

"I don't think so Danny. If you'd come in with me Collins would have thrown the grenade into the cave and we'd both be dead. I think that's what he wanted all along."

"To kill the members of Five-0?" Danny asked.

"No. To kill me. That's why he threw the grenade at the hillside and not at you. It's common knowledge that I was a Seal. He failed the course. I think he wanted to prove he was better than a Seal, or die in the process."

"So he killed the two HPD officers because he knew the governor would put us on the case and then he could draw you out and kill you?"

"Yes. That's what I think. But now he's dead we'll never know for certain."

Steve pulled a water bottle out of the side pocket of the pack and along with a couple of pain pills, passed it to Danny. "Here have a drink and relax. How's your head? Don't give me that look. I know it hurts."

Danny took the pills and a few sips of water, then set the bottle aside. "Yeah, well my arm stopped the rock from smashing my head in, but it still hit pretty hard."

"I figured that out when you were dizzy. Any nausea or blurred vision?"

"No. Just the mother of all headaches," Danny lied. "What about you? How's your back? There were some really big rocks around and on top of you. You look a little pale."

"I look a little pale Danny? Have you seen yourself lately?"

"Answer the question Steven," Danny said.

"My back hurts, and now my abdomen has started to hurt too."

"What? Take your vest off Steve and let me see," Danny said, with some urgency in his voice.

Steve attempted to remove his flak vest and Danny reached over with one arm and helped him, then eased Steve down.

Danny placed his hand on Steve's abdomen. He'd only applied a small amount of pressure, when Steve yelled in pain and batted his hand away. "Are you trying to kill me Danny? That really hurts."

"Sorry Steve. Can you turn on you side a little. I want to look at your back." With a groan and some help from Danny, Steve managed to roll onto his right side. Danny pulled Steve's shirt up to expose his lower back.

"Jeez Steve. This is bad. I think your spleen is ruptured."

"What? How do you even know that Danny? Are you a doctor now?"

"No Steve. I'm not a doctor. But I've seen this before. Back in Jersey, we were on a raid. One of the team, Vickers, was hit in the vest in the same location that you have a huge bruise forming. The bullet didn't penetrate his vest but the force of it ruptured his spleen."

"He was okay?"

"No. He thought he was okay and didn't seek medical help in time. He died Steve." Danny folded Steve's vest and put it under his head for a pillow. Then he covered Steve with an emergency blanket from the pack. The fact that Steve allowed him to do this without protest, worried Danny. "We need to get you out of here soon Steve."

**TBC**

**A/N: **Now Danny has to think of a way to save Steve. Will he? Yes because I don't right death fics. But how? You'll find out in the next chapter.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: **Thanks again for the reviews. I've been working and haven't had time to reply. I don't know anything about medical stuff except what I've researched on the internet. There's interesting stuff out there about ruptured spleens and whether to remove them or leave them in.

I don't own them, just play with them.

**Chapter Three**

Danny sat back and picked up his phone. Chin answered on the first ring. "Chin. Steve's hurt worse than we thought. How long 'till you get us out?"

"It'll take at least four hours, maybe longer Danny. What happened?"

"He was hit by rocks when the grenade exploded. I'm pretty sure he has a ruptured spleen, I've seen it before. We don't have four hours or more. He needs a hospital now."

"Okay. I'll see if I can make this happen any faster. Let me call you back."

Danny closed the phone and put it down on the ground. Steve was still lying on his side facing Danny. His eyes were closed and Danny could see tightness in his pale face that betrayed the pain he was in."

He had to do something. Danny slowly turned as he shone the flashlight around the walls of the cave. Over in the far left corner there was more shadow than he thought there should be. Danny struggled to his feet and using the wall for support, made his way towards the area.

"Where the hell are you going Danny?" Steve asked weakly.

"Steve? I thought you were asleep?"

"No. Not sleeping Danny, just resting my eyes. Answer the question."

"There's too much shadow over to the left, so I'm going to check it out."

"You're holding onto the wall, are you still dizzy? Sit back down, Chin will get us out."

"Steve. If I'm right you don't have time to wait for Chin. If your spleen is ruptured we have to get you out of here now." At the same time he was talking to Steve, Danny had been moving along the wall. He reached the left corner and found only an alcove. The cave didn't go anywhere as he'd hoped it would.

"Damn," Danny said as he moved back to Steve.

Steve had opened his eyes and watched Danny as he made slow progress back to him. "Dead end huh?"

"Yeah. I'd hoped it went somewhere, but it doesn't." Danny had now reached Steve and he carefully lowered himself down beside him. "Are you okay on your side, or would you like me to help your turn onto your back."

"I'm fine the way I am Danny."

They stayed that way for what seemed like hours to Danny, but actually was only a few minutes. Chin called back and told Danny he'd managed to find an earth mover not far away and it would be here soon to help get them out.

Steve had said nothing since Danny had sat back down, but now he stirred and opened his eyes. He reached out and took hold of Danny's right hand, then closed his eyes. "Hold on to me Danny something's wrong. I feel like I'm floating away."

"What? No Steve. Hold on to me. I won't let you go." Danny remembered Vickers had exhibited the same symptom. The doctors had called it 'bodily disassociation', a sure sign of hypotension when the blood pressure became too low. Another sign was a fast heart rate. Danny forced his left hand to moved and check the pulse at Steve's neck. He found it way too fast. There had to be something he could do. He felt so helpless. When Vickers died, Danny hadn't known the symptoms of a ruptured spleen, now he did. With Steve it was different. He knew what would happen and he still was unable to do anything about it. He didn't think he could just sit there and watch Steve die.

The flashlight was on the ground in front of Danny, so with a grunt of pain he reached out and switched it off in the hope that the darkness would ease the pounding in his head. He briefly closed his eyes then opened them again when Steve spoke. "Wow Danny look at that. Is that a light from heaven?"

"What? A light from heaven? Steve you're scaring me. Stop this."

"But Danny, look behind you," Steve said.

Danny turned and there at the back of the cave was a shaft of sunlight. "What the. . . Stay still Steve, I'm going to check that out."

There was a hole in the roof as plain as day. Danny couldn't believe it. When he first entered the cave it was completely dark, so the hole had to have opened up after the second rock fall. The flashlight had brightened up the cave and Danny hadn't noticed the sunlight. He couldn't tell if the hole was big enough to pull someone through, but it was a possible way out and right now that was what they needed.

Because he was still dizzy, Danny leaned against the back wall of the cave and took out his phone. "Chin. There is an opening in the roof at the back of the cave. I can see sunlight. Check it out, but be careful. I don't know if it will hold up."

"Okay Danny. Don't be under there while we check it out just in case. I'll call you back soon."

Danny made his way back over to Steve and as he sat down once more, he took hold of Steve's hand again. "I'm back Steve, you still with me?"

"Still here Danny, but I'm really dizzy and my whole side and shoulder hurt how."

"It won't be much longer Steve. Chin will check out that opening in the roof and get us out of here soon. You hold on."

A few minutes later there was a rumbling, then a man fell through the hole as the roof around it collapsed. Danny threw himself over Steve to protect him from the flying debris.

When the dust settled, Danny eased himself up and looked around. No large rocks had reached them, but they were both covered in dust. There was also a man hanging down from the roof. The man coughed then waved at Danny.

"Chin?"

"Yeah brah. How's that for an entrance?"

"Spectacular. Are you okay?

Chin started to lower himself down before he answered Danny. "I'm fine. We figured the opening would give way so I was ready for it. Now, let's see about getting the two of you out of here."

Steve was only semiconscious, which made it difficult to get him up and move him over to the hole. Chin did most of the work, but Danny insisted he could help by supporting Steve on one side.

Once they got Steve to the hole, Chin put a harness on him and attached him to the rope. "I'll have to go up with him Danny, but I'll be right back down for you. Okay?"

"That's fine Chin. Just get him to help. He's fading fast. I can wait. I can't go anywhere anyway." Danny moved over to the wall and slid down into a seated position.

Chin and Steve were already a few feet off the ground now. "Danny, are you alright?"

"No. But I will be as soon as you get Steve the help he needs. Don't worry about me."

By now Chin was at the roof and hands reached in to pull him and Steve out of the hole. Danny watched until they were gone, then lowered his head into his hands and closed his eyes. He'd lied to Steve earlier. His vision was blurry and there was some nausea. He must have dozed off because suddenly Chin was beside him.

"Danny! Danny! Wake up!" Chin shook Danny's shoulder. That caused his head to hurt worse.

"I'm awake. Stop that. You're not helping with the headache."

"Put this harness on Danny, we need to get you out of here and to the helicopter." Chin helped Danny up and started to put the harness on him.

"What? Are you holding the helicopter for me? No! Tell them to go. Steve needs to be at the hospital an hour ago Chin."

"He's already gone Danny. This is another helicopter sent for you. I figured you'd be hurt worse that you let on, just like Steve. So I ordered two helicopters." Chin helped Danny over to the opening and attached the rope.

"You. My friend. Are smart. You know us too well."

"If you mean that I know that neither of you would let the other know just how badly you were hurt. Then yes I do."

They were almost out when Danny made the mistake of looking down. The world spun around him and he slumped against Chin. "Danny? Danny?" Chin looked up at the men above him. "Get us out of here now," he said.

**TBC**

**A/N: **One more chapter after this which I'll try to have up on the weekend.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: **This is the last chapter, thanks to everyone who stayed with the story and reviewed. I really appreciate hearing from readers.

As usual I don't own Hawaii Five-0 just Season One on DVD.

**Chapter Four**

Danny felt like he was floating. He wasn't sure where he was, but he knew there was an annoying beep that had disturbed his sleep. Then the pain registered. His head hurt. His left arm hurt even worse. He tried to move to ease the pain in his arm but that just set off the pain all along his left side. There was a groan that he realised was his. Then there was someone bending over him.

"Hey Danny. You awake brah?"

"Kono?" It was Kono. Danny blinked a few times, then managed to open his eyes all the way and look at Kono. "Hey," he said.

"Good to see you back. You had us worried there for a while." Kono reached past Danny's head and pushed a button. "That'll bring a nurse. You look like you could use some pain meds."

Danny watched Kono as he tried to remember why he was here. He was sure it had something to do with Steve. It always did. Then he remembered and his breath caught in his throat. "Steve? Kono how's Steve?"

"See for yourself Danny. He's right over there," Kono said as she looked across the bed.

Danny groaned as he slowly turned his head to the left. Steve was in the other bed with Chin in the chair next to him. "Okay. I see him. But how is he?"

Chin was the one who answered Danny's question. "They were able to repair his spleen. The doctor decided not to remove it. You were right. It was ruptured."

"Is he going to be alright?" Danny asked. While they talked, a nurse came in to check Danny's vitals. She injected something into his IV, smiled at him and left.

Danny felt relief immediately and knew he'd be out really soon. Before he'd let sleep take him though, he needed an answer to his question. "Chin. Will he be alright?"

"He lost a lot of blood Danny. They're replacing it still, but they think he'll pull through. Get some sleep. When you wake again, maybe Steve will have woken up too."

"I hope so because I . . ." Danny wanted to say more but whatever the nurse had given him must have been strong because he couldn't fight it any longer. With a sigh he let go and fell asleep.

The next time Danny woke he felt something warm tucked under his right arm. He was warm all along his right side. He blinked and his eyes met Rachael's. She smiled at him and put down the book she held in her hands. "Good to see you back with us Danny. Grace was really worried because you were asleep so long. She refused to leave until you woke up, but she was tired."

Danny looked down at his daughter, who was asleep, snuggled up next to him. He smiled and patted her head. "Hey monkey. Wake up and give Danno a hug please."

"Danno?" came a sleepy voice. "Danno you're awake." Grace hugged him tightly. "I was so worried about you Danno."

"Well I'm fine now monkey. I was just really tired and needed to sleep extra long." Danny hugged Grace to him as he looked over towards Steve's bed. Chin and Kono sat next to Steve.

"How is he?" Danny asked.

"They've finally got his blood pressure back to normal, so they're hopeful he'll wake soon," Chin answered.

Rachael stood and placed a hand on Danny's arm. "I'm glad you're alright Daniel, but it's getting late. I need to take Grace home."

"No, I want to stay here with Danno," Grace said.

"Grace. Your mother's right. You should go home and rest. Come back tomorrow and visit. Maybe Uncle Steve will be awake by then."

Grace looked at Steve, then back at Danny. "Okay Danno." Graced kissed Danny, then slid from the bed. "See you tomorrow Danno." She walked over to Steve and leaned in to kiss him on the check. "I'll see you tomorrow Uncle Steve." Then she took her mother's hand and left.

Chin walked over to Danny's bed. "We should get going too Danny. It's been a long couple of days."

Kono stood and kissed Steve on the cheek, then walked over to Danny and did the same. "Don't scare me like that again Danny, or I'll hurt you myself."

"I'm fine Kono, and you'll see, Steve will be fine as well."

"He'd better be," she said, "we'll see you in the morning."

"See ya brah," Chin said as they left the room.

Danny looked over at Steve. He looked so peaceful lying there. "You'd better wake up soon Steven." He wanted to say more but a nurse chose that moment to enter the room. "Nice to see you awake Detective Williams. The doctor is on his way down to talk to you. Let me just check your vitals, then I'll get you something light to eat."

The doctor came in a few minutes later. Danny had a bowl of soup and toast in front of him, but he had no intentions of eating it. He still felt a little nausea and didn't intend to risk the chance of breaking his streak of not throwing up.

After he'd checked Danny's chart, the doctor told him what he already knew. He had a broken arm, now encased in plaster, bruises down his left side and a moderate concussion. "You can start to move around in the morning and if all goes well, I'll release you in a day or so."

"Thanks doc. Now tell me how Steve is," Danny said as he looked at the other bed.

The doctor picked up the other chart he had with him. "Commander McGarrett sustained a broken leg and heavy bruising to his back and left side which ruptured his spleen. We managed to repair the damage without removing the spleen and have replaced the blood he lost. He should wake up soon."

The doctor picked up both charts and headed towards the door. "I'll have the nurse give you an anti nausea medication so you can eat. Then you can have some mild pain medication to help you sleep. I'll be back in the morning to check up on you both."

"Thanks doc."

The nurse bustled back in and injected something into Danny's IV. Whatever it was it worked wonders because his stomach settled down and he found he could eat his meal. When he was done, she came and took away his tray and handed him two pills and a glass of water. "They're just a mild pain medication. They'll make you feel better so you can sleep."

"Thanks," Danny said as he took the pills and then settled down facing Steve. He didn't think he could sleep with the worry he felt over the fact that Steve was still unconscious, but the next thing he knew it was morning and the nurse was once again there to take vital signs.

"How is he?" Danny asked.

"Good morning Detective. His vitals are stronger but he's still out of it." She walked over to Danny. "Now let's see how you're doing. Once you've had your breakfast, you can get up for a while. The doctor wants you to move around."

That's how, an hour later when Grace arrived, she found Danny sitting in a chair next to Steve's bed.

"Danno you're up," Grace said as she ran to him.

"Easy Grace," Rachael said from the doorway. "Don't jump on your father. He's still healing."

Grace slid to a halt and gently hugged Danny. "Come here," Danny said as he eased Grace onto his lap. He looked over at the door. "How long can she stay?"

"I'll leave her here as long as you want Danny. She slept very badly last night worrying about you and Commander McGarrett, so I think she needs to be here."

"Thanks Rachael. I'll call you when she'd ready to go home, or I'll have her dropped off if you like."

"No, call me. I'll pick her up."

As Rachael left, Chin and Kono entered the room. The four of them spent the next few hours beside Steve with the hope that he'd wake up. Lunch time came around with no change in his condition. Chin and Kono went to get lunch and check in at the office.

Grace was perched on the side of Steve's bed reading to him, when Danny dozed off for a few minutes in his chair. He woke with a start, because he'd slipped and his left arm bumped the chair. He saw that Grace had stopped reading and was lying next to Steve, the same way she laid next to him the day before. Danny stood and looked down at the two of them. He'd thought Grace was asleep, but she looked up at him and said, "Danno, Uncle Steve is lost somewhere. We need to bring him back to us."

Danny pulled his chair in and picked up Steve's right hand. Grace snuggled closer to Steve and closed her eyes. She was asleep in no time and then Danny leaned forward, still holding Steve's hand.

"Steven. Grace is sure that you are lost somewhere. Well if she's right, then you have to feel her lying next to you and come back to her and me. I need you to come back so I can yell at you for scaring me like this. It's not just me though. You're scaring Chin and Kono, and most importantly you're scaring Grace. That's not allowed Steven. Grace loves you. So wake up and give her a hug. Please."

Danny didn't know if he expected a reaction from Steve or not. As it was, he didn't get one. Steve just kept right on sleeping.

After he'd watched Steve for a few minutes, Danny allowed his head to rest on their hands. He was really tired and knew he should get back into his own bed, but he needed to stay here with Steve and Grace.

Something moved against his face and woke him up. At first Danny didn't know where he was or what had woken him. He looked up and saw Steve and Grace lying in front of him. Steve's hand moved against his again. "Steve?"

There was a low moan from the man in the bed. Grace woke immediately. "Uncle Steve?" She pushed herself up so she could look into Steve's face. Danny sat there and watched Steve for any sign of a response to Grace.

Grace put her hand on the side of Steve's face and rubbed circles on his cheek. "Uncle Steve, wakeup. You've been asleep long enough and Danno and I are really worried about you."

Steve moved his head to press his cheek against Grace's fingers. Slowly he opened his eyes and blinked to focus on Grace. "Grace?"

"Uncle Steve! I'm so glad you're awake." Grace lay back down, put her arm around Steve to hug him and promptly fell back to sleep. It was then Steve saw Danny and realised that Danny was holding his hand. "Danny?"

"Hey," Danny said. He looked down to where he still held on to Steve's hand. "Don't get any ideas McGarrett. Grace thought you were lost somewhere and we're both your anchor here."

Steve smiled. "Thanks Danny. I was lost and you two were my anchor. I could feel Grace next to me and I heard your voice." Steve gave Danny's hand a squeeze. "I'm sorry I scared you Danny."

"You're sorry? You're sorry?" Danny sighed. "If my daughter wasn't asleep right next to you I'd yell at you for being such an idiot. This time you managed to get us both hurt, not just me." Danny squeezed Steve's hand to take the sting out of his words. "I'm glad you found your way back to us Steve."

"Yeah, I love you too Danno," Steve said as he slipped back into sleep with a smile on his face.

**The End**

**A/N:** I hope the ending wasn't too abrupt but I don't like to drag out hospital scenes and now that Steve woke up, it's all good.

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